There’s an interesting comment in the Wall Street Journal this morning.   The author of an article on the bailout plan noted that an underlying cause of the credit crisis is that “bankers, governments, investors, and customers simply have lost faith in the lending system on a number of fronts.”

That quote reminds us how critically important trust is for all business relationships.  You can certainly make a good argument, as the WSJ author did, that a breakdown of trust–or maybe a lack of trust in the first place–did a lot to get us in the mess we see today.

So it’s a good time to think carefully, as business owners, about what we can do to increase the bond of trust with our customers and clients.

We don’t have to look far or think hard to come up with a way to do that.  The simple fact is that one of the best ways to build trust is to talk with people.  And surveys provide one of the best ways to carry on a conversation with our customers and clients.

Here are a few examples of how surveys can help us build trust with them:

• We build trust with our customers by asking their opinions.  By using surveys to ask our customers what products they want or how satisfied they are with our services, we build trust by demonstrating interest in them, respect for who they are and what they want.
• We build trust with our customers and clients by rewarding them for taking surveys.  The “incentives” or “thank you gifts” we provide show them that we value their time and expertise.  That makes them much more likely to trust us.
• We build trust with our customers and clients by doing surveys well. Crafting surveys that are clear, that are well-organized, and that are efficient gives us another way to demonstrate our expertise and professionalism.  This will not only increase their willingness to provide the information we need but also increase their respect for, and trust in, our expertise.
• We build trust by using the information we get from surveys well.  When we “report back” to our clients and customers on survey results and act on the information, we build a bond with our customers that makes them feel “invested” in our businesses.
• We build trust by protecting our customers’ information.  When we do a survey, we should always use a web survey program that encrypts their data.  We should also protect our customers’ confidentiality.
• We build trust with our customers by showing them our stuff  works.  Surveys let us do that by generating systematic evidence.

Take advantage of these critically important ways to use surveys to build trust with your customers.  Doing so could help you profit from these troubled economic times.

So many people out there are looking for the “magic bullet,” the “hidden secret” that will let them achieve the success that top Internet marketers enjoy.

The simple fact is, the “secrets” are there, for everyone to see, if you know where to look.

Listen to any of the most successful marketers for more than 5 minutes and you’ll find the secret quickly:  They recognize Internet marketing is a business and they approach it as any good business person would.

They may jump out of airplanes, play video games, strum a lap guitar, film themselves on ski slopes or beaches–that’s the “hook.”  But right after that comes the “pivot,” the serious information about how to succeed in this business.  And you can bet that, while they enjoy thoroughly the fun from their Internet profits, they work hard.  More importantly, they work SMART.  As I heard Frank Kern say recently, “When it’s time to get funky, it’s time to get funky.”

These folks have some very important traits in common–and doing surveys is among those traits.

What are the “4 S’s” that distinguish successful Internet marketers?  Successful Internet marketers are

Schooled–They invest time, energy, and money in learning all aspects of their businesses.

Selective–They’re careful about where and how they invest their time and money.

Serious–They treat their businesses with the care and attention they deserve.

and they have

Systems in place–They recognize that systems and processes make it all work.

And one of the systems that they have in place is surveys.  Most successful marketers use surveys in all phases of their businesses, to

• Find out what their customers want, so that they create those products;
• Find out how their customers like their products and services,
• Learn how to refine their products,
• Generate systematic evidence that their products work,
• Produce case studies and testimonials to support the systematic evidence,
• Generate referrals.

They recognize what many business people do not:  That the days in which only the Fortune 500 companies could afford this kind of information are over.  And if they want to succeed, they must put this information at their fingertips.

Stay tuned.  We’re working on a product that will help put these systems to work for you in your business.